Brace yourself.  

I say that to the people who don't understand, or possibly know about 
the whirlwind romance Michael & I shared in October 2001.  Some are 
further along -- they know and understand everything through our separation
in November.  Others are really with the program and even get why I went to 
Italy in December, and more importantly, why Michael came to Italy in 
January to bring me home.  Anyone NOT up to that point, brace yourself.
What follows Italy may blow your mind.  It still blows mine most days!

Upon our return in late January, we began planning our wedding.  
I knew I would marry Michael (some day) when we dated in October... 
October 21, 2001 to be exact (you will have to ask for that explanation
in person, sorry).  Michael said he was certain he was going to marry me 
January 18, 2002, the moment he saw me at the airport in Rome. 

In February, we spoke with our priest and friend Father Tony Dittmer, 
to discuss his availability in 2003.  We also designed my rings at 
P&J on Wacker Drive (Jeweler's Row) in Chicago -- anyone remember 
those two weekends in a row we were in the city in early March? 
Michael was playing in a winter basketball league with Ed LeSage 
and some of the other usual suspects.  He decided to jam his left
ring finger two days before our appointment.  Today his finger is 
1.5 times its normal size.  Better than it was during our ring 
appointment, but still too swollen to try on rings... :[

One day when he can bend his finger again without squealing 
we'll get him a ring.  So my rings were purchased and in hand by mid
March, then put in our house safe to sit and torture Dana for months. 
No, I am not bitter.... anymore.  Ha.  One person did know about our 
rings incidentally -- Brian Mueller (Michael's long-time friend and 
insurance agent).  I am amazed that Brian kept quiet so long.  Maybe
it has something to do with Michael threatening to break both his legs 
if he told?  Joke!...

Michael could not meet my Mom, who lives in Florida, until Mother's
Day weekend.  I could not meet Michael's brother, who lives in Oregon,
until Memorial Day weekend.  We were also (for some odd reason) trying
to be sensitive to the shock everyone was already going through over his
spontaneous trip to Italy... Personally, I think it is good for people,
all the unexpected outpouring of our plans and our crazy love.

So we waited and waited to drop our wedding date on people.  And our
wedding was, afterall, well over a year away anyway... hardly an 
emergency announcement.

We learned right away that Holy Cross doesn't allow weddings 
in July or August -- no air conditioning!  Suddenly we have about 10 weeks
less dates to choose from.  It got us thinking about reception sites...  
How booked are they already in Feb '02 for 2003?  VERY!

The biggest dilemma, is of course, WHERE to have your reception...

It had to be somewhere special to both of us, a place of significance
so we could be sure it will be around for us to return anytime we 
felt like celebrating US.

We share a love and appreciation for our alma mater, the University
of Illinois.  It is as close to a "sure thing" as you can get that the 
Illini Union will be sitting on Green Street throughout our lifetimes! 
We learned that our  affiliation as alumni would allow us to hold a 
reception in the Illini Union, and more importantly, that receptions 
are NOT allowed during school sessions.

Our pool of potential dates just dropped about 80%, and several 
of these were already taken.  As of Feb '02, a week in March and a 
handful of weeks in June and August were left.  March was out, no 
weddings allowed in the church during Lent.  The other 3-4 dates 
available fell primarly in August, all but June 14!  And so it was 
hand chosen for us by God, as all things ultimately are in life.

Saturday, June 14, 2003!

Great news, Father Dittmer is available to marry us - yippee!
March, April, May pass by.  We finally meet the family members 
previously mentioned, and have given people a few months to get
over our "Roman Reunion".  At this point it is a waiting game.  
When will he ask?  Who the heck knows!  I'm sure I was not hiding 
my impatience well at times.  C'mon, I'm a woman!  Do you know how 
hard it is not to talk about the fact that you are getting married, 
especially when people kept asking when we were getting married?!

Patience is a virtue, so they say, and I found more than I ever 
knew I had.  The experience was worth the wait.  Michael picked the 
perfect day and the perfect way to ask me to share my life with him.  
Look right, I'll walk you through it...